One of the vexing problems with targeted delivery of chemotherapeutic agents or other forms of therapy with the use of nanoparticle carriers is how to associate these agents with specific cells to achieve selective molecular imaging or site targeted drug therapy. This requires the incorporation of a targeting ligand that can bind to a specific molecular epitope on the cell surface, which subsequently allows detection of particle binding by imaging methods, or drug delivery to the cell of choice. Generally, this targeting ligand is formulated into the nanoparticle by a chemical reaction or by physical association, in a process that is integral to the very construction of the nanoparticle itself such that at the end of the process, a singular and highly specific targeting delivery system is produced. In order to produce an alternatively targeted delivery system, the entire formulation process must be recapitulated for another targeting ligand, typically requiring new design strategies for ligand association that could change the formulation process dramatically and affect its performance as a targeted delivery system. Consequently, there is a need in the art for a universal anchor peptide that would allow the pre-formed construction of carrier systems, and then later allow their flexible association with a particular ligand for targeting, therapeutic, reporting, or imaging purposes.